Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center, Mission Viejo, and County of Orange Emergency Medical Services want to see whether portable defibrillators operated by trained volunteers and placed in various public areas will increase the survival rate of cardiac arrest victims.
The National Institutes of Health and the American Heart Association selected Mission and the county to participate in its 15-month nationwide public-access defibrillation trial.
Defibrillators deliver electric shocks to restart hearts that have ceased beating.
“Cardiac arrest is the No. 1 cause of death in the United States; about 500,000 cases occur every year. The survival rate is less than 20%,” said Dr. Stephen Ehrlich, Mission Hospital’s principal trial investigator.
“Cardiac arrest is not a heart attack. They are separate,” said Ehrlich, a cardiac electrophysiologist. Ehrlich compared a heart attack to a plumbing problem because it involves blocked arteries, while cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating for any of a variety of reasons.
Trial sites include the Leisure World retirement community, Orange County courthouses, several Costco membership warehouses and senior and community centers. Ehrlich said the investigators also are interested in conducting trials in large businesses with an older workforce, because cardiac arrest risk increases with age.
If the study shows that defibrillators do reduce deaths from cardiac arrest, more of the machines could be donated and volunteer training and use would continue, Ehrlich said. He said if the opposite is found, the focus of public policy could shift to providing emergency medical technicians in public areas.
Ehrlich is working with Dr. Bruce Haynes, OC Emergency Medical Services’ medical director, on the trial. Haynes’ role includes overseeing volunteer training, including CPR instruction, and collecting data.
“It is quite simple to use. Anybody who is physically able to push a button” should be able to use the defibrillator, Haynes said. The doctor said his department was “more than happy” to help with the study and added that the information from it should help healthcare providers and businesses.
Davis Vetoes Cardiovascular Bill
In other cardiac-care news, Gov. Gray Davis vetoed AB 1847, a bill by Assemblyman Howard Wayne, D-San Diego, that would have established a task force to create a state master plan for cardiovascular disease and stroke protection. Davis said the provisions of Wayne’s bill overlap with the responsibilities of a federally funded cardiovascular-disease outreach, resources and epidemiology program administered by the state Department of Health Services. He also said that the bill did not provide necessary funding to hire staff and complete a required report.
More on PacifiCare’s Costs
In my Sept. 4 column, I wrote about a town meeting held by Santa Ana-based PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. and noted that its Secure Horizons Medicare HMO spent 77 cents of every dollar on healthcare costs in 1999. While PacifiCare says the 77 cents for direct hospital and physician costs is correct, a company spokesman said I should also have counted 7 cents for prescription drugs and 3 cents for dental, vision, hearing and out-of-area services in the complete healthcare dollar equation. With those added, Secure Horizons spends 87 cents of each premium dollar on direct healthcare costs, with 10 cents for administration and 3 cents for profit.
Bits and Pieces:
Beckman Coulter Inc., Fullerton, is assuming sales responsibility for its Access immunoassay system in 90 markets throughout Europe, Africa and the Pacific Rim. Beckman also said it agreed not to renew a distribution contract for Access with Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc. … Advanced Sterilization Products, Irvine, launched its STERRAD 100S, a low-temperature hydrogen peroxide gas plasma sterilizer for processing medical devices and surgical instruments. Advanced Sterilization Products is a unit of Johnson & Johnson … Atairgin Technologies Inc., Irvine, completed a $7.2 million private placement. Atairgin plans to use the funds for clinical development of a blood test to diagnose ovarian cancer … Maret Pharmaceuticals Inc., Newport Beach, said a study done by University of Southern California researchers was the first direct published evidence that Angiotensin II, a peptide hormone, stimulates blood-cell growth. Maret’s developed MARstem, an analog of the hormone that it says doesn’t affect a patient’s blood pressure … New Millennium Community Coalition, Tustin, and 100 Black Men of Orange County are having a free health exposition Sept. 23 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Tustin Community Center, 300 Centennial Way. For information, e-mail nmcc3@yahoo.com or call (714) 972-2190 or (714) 284-9545 … Irvine Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Irvine, and Chapman Medical Center, Orange, are hosting free prostate cancer lectures and screenings on Sept. 19 and 20, respectively. For Irvine reservations, call (800) 262-6210; for Chapman reservations, call (800) 318-4953.
